The goal of this project is to develop a flexible and conductive biologically based material to be implemented in electronic textiles and wearables for several applications including photovoltaics, biomedical sensors, communication devices, etc. We want to create a new generation of smart textiles that integrates electronics with biology to open great opportunities for different market sectors, going beyond the inorganic and rigid electronics. We use an innovative approach that combines biological matrices with graphene and organic semiconductors in order to create and apply a new material.

In the definition phase, a scientific research will be carried out in Brazil to test different biological matrices in combination with some conductive materials. For that, a laboratory will be set up to carry out the R&D of the product. In the implementation phase, the developed product will be incorporated into design products and tested in the market.

We have established a few lines of materials to guide the research, based on promising new materials that have been reported in scientific literature and innovative business. We describe some of this references in the next session. Four types of biological matrices will be tested for desirable physical properties and good compatibility in the incorporation of the conductive materials:

1. biosynthetic cellulose

2. microbial biofilms

3. mycelium-based materials

4. waste crop fibers

The sheets obtained from these biological matrices will be tested in the incorporation with three different conductive materials in order to produce performance composites:

1. graphene oxide nanoparticles

2. melanin (natural polymer)

3. PEDOT: PSS polymer

The composites will be submitted to several analysis to identify structural characteristics, mechanical and electrical properties. These analysis will be done in partner laboratories and include Raman Spectroscopy, Transmission Electron Microscopy, Tensile testing and Sheet resistance. The best performance material will then follow to implementation phase where it is going to be integrated into a design prototype of a biomedical sensor for heart beat monitoring or another application depending on the results obtained.

For this project to take place we have a team of experts led by a PhD researcher specialized in graphene technology, together with researches with molecular biology and chemistry backgrounds as well as the company's expertise in engineering and experimental research in technology.